Andyjr1515

And we're ready for the final furlong It's difficult to describe the difference between a full poly-type gloss and a light Tru-oil gloss (you can build it up and build it up as an alternative), and even more difficult to photograph it. But once it has fully hardened, it sinks much more into the grain which I describe as "more like an old guitar polished up than a new guitar made to look older". It's easier to photograph that effect on the back: Than the front: ...but the effect is the same on both sides. The main thing, though, is that the finish is now tough enough to stand normal handling for the final stages. And those final stages are: a bit more work on the frets; rounding of the fretboard edges; copper shielding the control chambers (I'll check with Martin at SimS to see if he recommends the pickup chambers too); cutting the jack hole and fitting the plate; installing the switches and pots and bridge earth wire; installing the pickups; fitting the magnets to the control hatch cover; stringing up and final set up. Talking of the bridge earth, it's something that doesn't come up very often in the build threads, but it can be one of the more challenging tasks of a build. No matter how close the chamber is to the bridge area, the hole for the wire has to be at a very shallow angle so that you don't just drill out of the back! This one has an added challenge - the carriers for the individual tuners are super slim (normally, the entry hole is under a 90mm x 60mm bridge plate) and I have to drill at an angle to miss the bridge screw-holes So it calls for a long drill. A LONG drill. If there was such a thing as a 'medium long bradpoint drill', then for this one, it could have been maybe half that length - but I've never been able to find one: Why only one hole? Well, happily, the other strings will be electrically connected via the head block. For the connection itself, I stick some copper shielding foil on the flat mating surface, soldered to the bridge wire that sits in the drill hole entrance. That way you get a great electrical connection without the bridge plate being lifted by bare wires, problems often associated with the 'traditional' stripped wire way of earthing the bridge plate. I'll take a photo when I do that bit. And why didn't I drill the hole before I fitted the ebony inset? Well, I could have done, but then I would have had to line up the bridge blocks before fitting the wood they were going to sit on. Building basses are full of these 'neither way is ideal' decisions. A lesson for broader life, I suppose

Coming along very nicely

I'm chuffed to bits It looks great

You will be able to see when you take the fretboard off. It really depends what kind of joint it is.

And you can see why MrsAndyjr1515 is always so angry!

It's a long (and tedious) story...

OK - I'm paying attention. This is getting real and exciting So, the Aria FEB is this one? I've just re-read the thread. Just a thought - and do feel free to ignore it I've got the wrong end of the stick. I've read your musings on getting the right kind of angle of the board to give you a floating overhang and I'm not convinced that there is enough wiggle room to get the board a steep enough angle with the sanding and building up approach (if I've understood those musings properly). The amount of thinning down and building up tends to be impractically high for any major change in angle. On the other hand, a small change of the angle at the heel can make a huge difference (think of how thin a shim needs to be on a bolt-on neck to correct the action if the bridge is over its adjustment range). Once you've got the board off, you should be able to see the neck joint... Because all that got me thinking. And I remembered that years and years ago - I bought a cello neck And to my surprise, I've just found it (MrsAndyjr1515 is, as you can imagine, delighted) : ...and realised just how small that heel angle has to be (5.5 degrees)... ...to produce this effect at the overhang: ...and you might have access to that neck joint soon.....

And what a pleasure that was. If I had to choose the favourite bass I've ever held in my hands, it would be - without doubt, that one. Couldn't tell you why. It just felt magical.

They look like DiMarzios to me...

Looks a nice board

Looks great, @W1_Pro ! Always had a soft spot for Washburns. And yes - this fits nicely in this section Hope all well with you and yours

Yes - that second coat looks a lot better. It is always a surprise just how much hard work it is to actually sand fully back to the wood! Great stuff - look forward to seeing the result

Like the sound of this Mad as a box of frogs - Love it!

It's @Fishman 's request but - with there being so much black on the pickguard pickups, etc - it looks right to me.

Ideally (if I get my drill holes the right size ), just an interference fit. You only really need them not to drop out when you are changing strings...

Most of the reveal coat of stain and tru-oil is off. One last job before the final hand sand and 'watching paint dry' stage is the string-through ferrule recesses. For this I use my Proxxon drill press for accuracy (it is small but it has very little runout - spindle wobble - that affects many drill presses) and then the old channel-tunnel trick of drilling from both sides and meeting in the middle to ensure that the entry holes and exit holes are individually lined up visually, but also actually meet in the middle to allow you to get the string through . The holes at the back are recessed to ensure that the tops of the ferrules are flush with the back. With ferrules, it's best not to 'try them and see if they fit' before you are ready to fit them permanently

Nope. No prize; no cigar

I haven't. I suspect that wooden binding would loosen in places and have to be reglued on reassembly and acrylic binding would distort and need to be replaced.

Just wipe on and buff off will certainly darken the exposed wood at the same time as removing any on the lacquer.

I'd like to take credit, but this was how the blank was delivered to me One of the best suppliers in the UK

No gloss on this one - we're going for the slurry and buff satin And yes, you can do slurry and buff with stained wood - but there is a very specific sequence you have to do which I'll cover when I do the reveal next week

So that's all the excitement over Now it's a case of stripping it all back to the wood and starting the full finish. As it won't look tangibly different to the mockup on the previous page for a few days I won't do a 'watching paint dry' step by step. Instead I'll just summarise once it's looking even and satiny.

Specifically here: ...so I think @durhamboy gets the prize... ...which is... ...a big cheesy grin from Andyjr1515 :

Pretty close. It's easy to see at the back: But quite skillfully matched by David Dyke's team at the front:

I woke up this morning and thought...what's better than Tusq XL for a nut. Another root around in my (chaotic) bits box and I found what was just one step better - a piece of bleached bone. Life's too short to work out the 'string thickness compensated' separations so I use a commercial plastic one as a guide where I can I ground it down to height and added the dropaway and with my trusty Hosco nut files got on with it. I don't use this vice very often but for this it is perfect: And done. Ready to box up over the weekend and ship back to @Raslee first thing Monday :